Envelope for information-bearing sheets and the like



28, 1965 A. 5. DE URIARTE PlNA 3,225,769

ENVELOPE FOR INFORMATION-BEARING SHEETS AND THE LIKE Filed Sept. 25, 1961 2 Sheets-Sheet l INVENTORI ANGEL BERNARDO de LIE/ARTE PIM 2 /'7 2/ BY AWMM J flaw,

ATTO/FNEY 1965 A. B. DE URIARTE PINA 3,225,769

ENVELOPE FOR INFORMATION-BEARING SHEETS AND THE LIKE Filed Sept. 25, 1961 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 INVENTOR ANGEL EEFNAADO ae (IE/AME Pl/VA M104 f- W United States Patent 3,225,769 ENVELOPE FOR INFORMATION-BEARING SHEETS AND THE LIKE Angel Bernardo de Uriarte Pir'ia, Madero 40-101 and 102, Mexico City, Mexico Filed Sept. 25, 1961, Ser. No. 140,330 4 Claims. (Cl. 129-16) The present invention relates to envelopes or wrappers for information containing sheets, cards and the like, and more particularly to an envelope which is especially suited for use in filing cabinets of insurance companies, banks, governmental. agencies and many other institutions in which proper filing of, and rapid access to information or intelligence of all kinds are of great importance and constitute a large percentage of the work performed by the employees.

An important object of the invention is to provide an envelope which is constructed and assembled in such a way that the information contained on a sheet placed into the envelope may be observed without necessitating removal of the sheet from the envelope and also without necessitating complete removal of the envelope from its filing cabinet.

Another object of the invention is to provide an envelope of the just outlined characteristics which is constructed and which may be filed in a cabinet or the like in such a way that the last entries made on sheets filed in two or more envelopes stored in the same cabinet may be photographed in a single operation while the envelopes remain in their cabinet and while the sheets remain in their envelopes.

A further object of the invention is to provide a very simple and inexpensive envelope of the above described type which may be produced of readily available materials in all necessary sizes and shapes, which is constructed and assembled in such a way that a sheet stored therein may be rapidly and conveniently removed if a new entry is to be made thereon, which fully protects the information-bearing sheet against smudging, moisture or certain other undesirable influences, and which may be conveniently stored in many types of filing cabinets without necessitating any or by necessitating only small changes in the construction of such cabinets.

Still another object of the instant invention is to provide an information-bearing sheet for use in the envelope of the above outlined characteristics.

With the above objects in view, the invention resides in the provision of an envelope for information-bearing sheets, cards and the like which comprises a substantially rectangular rear panel, a substantially rectangular front panel consisting at least in part of transparent material, and means for connecting the two panels along the lower and along one lateral edge portion thereof. The other lateral edge portion of the front and/or rear panel is formed with cutout means for facilitating removal and insertion of an information-bearing sheet between the panels.

Certain other features of the invention reside in the provision of an envelope wherein the unconnected lateral edge portion of the front panel extends beyond the rear panel or vice versa so that a person may rapidly open the envelope in order to insert or to remove an information-bearing sheet therefrom, in the provision of means secured to the upper edge portion of the rear panel for guiding the envelope in channels formed in a filing cabinet or the like in which a series of envelopes is stored, in the provision of means for forming a window along the lower edge of the front panel through which certain items of information constituting the last entry on the sheet are visible without necessitating removal of the sheet from its envelope, in the provision of an information ice storing system which includes .a filing cabinet or drawer and a plurality of envelopes stored in the cabinet in such a way that certain items of information contained on the sheets received in the envelopes are observable at a glance in the form of a list without it being necessary to remove the envelopes or the sheets from the cabinet, and in the provision of a prefolded information-bearing sheet or card for use in the improved envelope.

The novel features which are considered as characteristic of the invention are set forth in particular in the appended claims. The invention itself, however, both as to its construction and its method of operation, together with additional objects and advantages thereof, will be best understood from the following detailed description of a specific embodiment with reference to the accompanying drawings, in which:

FIG. 1 is a front elevational view of an envelope which embodies the invention;

FIG. 2 is a front elevational view of the rear panel.

which forms part of the envelope shown in FIG. 1;

FIG. 3 is a front elevational view of the front panel of the envelope in the form it assumes prior to its connection with the rear panel;

FIG. 4 is an enlarged fragmentary transverse section through the envelope as seen in the direction of arrows from the line IV'IV in FIG. 7;

FIG. 5 is an {enlarged fragmentary front elevational view of the lower; I-edge portion of the assembled envelope;

FIG. 6 is a front elevational view of an informationbearing sheet which is to be stored in the envelope; and

FIG. 7 is a perspective view of a drawer or cabinet which serves as a means for storing a plurality of envelopes of the type shown in FIG. 1.

Referring now in greater detail to the illustrated em,-.

bodiment, and first to FIG. 1, there is shown an envelope 10 which comprises a preferably opaque rectangular panel 11 made of suitable lightweight cardboard or the like,

and a fully or partly transparent or translucent rectangular. front panel 12 which consists of a suitable flexible syn-- thetic plastic material, e.g. cellophane or the like. The

length of the front panel 12 exceeds slightly the lengthof the rear panel 11 so that, when the two panels are assembled to form the envelope 10, the free right-hand lateral edge portion 13 of the front panel extends beyond the right-hand edge of the rear panel. This enables an operator, e.g. a filing clerk, to rapidly open the envelope 10 by moving the right-hand lateral edge portions of the two panels away from each other. Of course, it is also possible to extend the right-hand lateral edge portion of the rear panel 11 beyond the right-hand edge of the front panel 12 in order to achieve the same result, but it has been found that it is more convenient to open the envelope (i.e. to move the two panels apart) if the front panel extends beyond the rear panel.

The panels 11, 12 are respectively formed with cutouts or notches 14, 15 which extend inwardly from the righthand edges thereof and which serve as a means for permitting a person to rapidly graps with the thumb andindex finger of his or her right hand an informationbearing sheet 16 (FIGS. 5 and 6) which is normally stored between the panels 11, 12 of the envelope 10. Of course, it might be sufficient to provide a cutout-in the right-hand lateral edge portion of only one of the panels 11, 12; however, it is more convenient to remove the sheet 16 if each of these panels is provided with a cutout.

In assembling the envelope 10, the lower edge portion of the front panel 12 whose height originally exceeds the height of the rear panel 11 is folded twice along a pair of rather closely adjacent lines 17, 18 which are.

parallel t its lower edge 19 so as to form a flap 20 extending between the edge 19 and the line 18, and a narrow intermediate portion 21 extending between the fold lines 17, 18. The space or pocket defined by the rear side of the main portion of the front panel 12 above the fold line 17, by intermediate portion 21, and by the flap 20 is suflicient to accommodate the lower edge portion of the rear panel 11 and the lowermost portion of the sheet 16 even if the latter is doubled over itself by folding it along one of the fold lines 23 indicated in FIG. 6. The pocket should hold the sheet 16 so that the [latter will not slide away from the lower edge of the envelope.

The means for connecting the panels 11, 12 to each other may consist of a suitable adhesive or a series of staples 24 which are preferably applied in such a way as to connect the flap 20 to the rear side of the rear panel 11 along the latters lower edge and to connect the left-hand lateral edge portions of the two panels. In other words, the upper edge portion of the front panel 12 need not and the right-hand lateral edge portion 13 of the front should not be connected with the rear panel 11 since the sheet 16 is introduced into and withdrawn from the envelope between the right-hand lateral edge portions of the panels (see the arrow 25 is FIG.

The upper edge portion 26 of the rear panel is folded rearwardly to form an elongated flap and is secured to the main body portion of the panel 11 by a series of staples 27. The flap 26 and the main body portion of the panel 11 then form an elongated pocket 28 for a guiding means in the form of an elongated flexible wire or rod 29 whose end portions project beyond the lateral edge portions of the panels and are received in prismatic or otherwise configurated blocks of guide members 30 by means of which the envelope may be guided in suitable channels 32 provided along the bottom portions of side walls forming part of a cabinet or drawer 31 in the manner shown in FIG. 7. The lower edge portions of the envelopes are then staggered in such a way that the last entry of information contained on a select-ed portion of each sheet 16 is visible through a window 33 (see FIG. 5). Such windows are formed by applying to the lowere edge portions of front panels 12 opaque strips 34, 35. As shown in FIG. 5, the strip 34 may be provided with printed matter identifying the case or customer to which the sheet 16 pertains. The other strip 35 may be of a selected color so as to facilitate the work of a clerk in rapidly locating a selected envelope. If it desired to remove a given sheet 16 from the envelope 10, the clerk merely pivots the envelope about its guide members 30 so that the envelope is moved into a substantially vertical plane, whereupon the sheet may be withdrawn upon insertion of two fingers into the cutouts 14, 15.

The entries visible through the windows 33 of the envelopes stored in the cabinet or drawer 31 together form a list and may be photographed without necessitating removal of sheet 16 from their respective envelopes. The sheets are withdrawn only if a new entry is made thereon; for example, a new entry can be made between the uppermost fold lines 23a, 23b whereupon the sheet of FIG. 6 is folded along the line 23b and is reinserted into the envelope so that the last entry typed or written above the line 23b is observable through the window 33. By photographing, rather than by copying, the information visible through the windows 33 of the envelopes arranged in a manner as shown in FIG. 7, one can rapidly record the information without any danger of making an error so that the proofreading of the record, such as is necessary if the information is copied line-by-line by hand or by typewriter may be dispensed with. The width of front panel portions which are visible of the envelopes are mounted in the cabinet 31 in a manner shown in FIG. 7 probably equals the distance between a pair of adjacent fold lines 23 on the sheet 16.

Without further analysis, the foregoing will so fully reveal the gist of the present invention that others can,

by applying current knowledge, readily adapt it for vari ous applications without omitting features that, from the standpoint of prior art, fairly constitute essential. characteristics of the generic and specific aspects of thisinvention and, therefore, such adaptations should and are intended to be comprehended within the meaning and? range of equivalence of the following claims.

What is claimed as new and desired to be protected by Letters Patent is:

1. An envelope for information-bearing sheets and the like, said envelope comprising, in combination, a substantially rectangular rear panel and a substantially rectangular front panel, said front panel consisting at least in part of transparent material and each of said panels having an upper edge portion, a lower edge portion and two lateral edge portions; means for connecting said panels along the lower and along one lateral edge portion thereof, the other lateral edge portion of at least one of said panels having cutout means for facilitating removal and insertion of a sheet between said panels; and envelopeguiding means secured to the upper edge portion and extending beyond the lateral edge portions of said rear panel.

2. An envelope as set forth in claim 1, wherein said guiding means comprises an elongated wire secured to the upper edge portion and having end portions extending beyond the lateral edge portions of the rear panel, and guide members secured to the end portions of said wire, said guide members receivable in channels of a cabinet or the like in which the envelope is filed.

3. An information storing system comprising, in combination, a cabinet having a pair of side walls and elongated channels provided along the lower portions of said side walls; and a plurality of envelopes for informationbearing sheets, each of said envelopes comprising a substantially rectangular rear panel and a substantially rectangular front panel, said front panel consisting at least in part of transparent material and each of said panels having an upper edge portion, a lower edge portion and two lateral edge portions, means for connecting said panels along the lower and along one lateral edge portion thereof, the other lateral edge portion of at least one of said panels having cutout means for facilitating removal and insertion of an information-bearing sheet between said panels so that the sheet also extends between the lower edge portions of said panels, and means secured to the upper edge portion of said rear panel and received in the channels of said cabinet for guiding the respective envelope therealong, said envelopes overlapping each other so that the lower edge portions of said front panels are staggered with respect to each other whereby the information on the sheets inserted between the panels of said envelopes is observable through the lower edge portions of said front panels.

4. An envelope for information-bearing sheets and the like, said envelope comprising, in combination, a substantially rectangular rear panel and a substantially rectangular front panel, said front panel consisting at least in part of transparent material and each of said panels having a lower edge portion and two lateral edge portions; means for connecting said panels along the lower and along one lateral edge portion thereof, the other lateral edge portion of each of said panels having cutout means for facilitating removal and insertion of a sheet between said panels, said other lateral edge portion of at least one of said panels extending beyond the other panel; strips of opaque material secured to the lower edge portion of said front panel and forming a window through which the information contained on a sheet placed between said panels may be observed without removing the sheet from the envelope; and envelopeguiding means secured to the upper edge portion and extending beyond the lateral edge portions of said rear panel.

(References on following page) References Cited by the Examiner UNITED STATES PATENTS Rand 1291 6 Rand 1291 6 Fall 12916 Rand 1291 6 Attwood 1291 6 Kjellerup 12920 Dawson 1291 6.7

6 1,885,354 11/1932 Hurley 12916 2,650,594 9/1953 Heilman 12916 FOREIGN PATENTS 193,345 11/1957 Austria.

818,837 8/1959 Great Britain.

895,261 3/1944 France. 1,009,967 3/1952 France.

Primary Examiner. 

1. AN ENVELOPE FOR INFORMATION-BEARING SHEETS AND THE LIKE, SAID ENVELOPE COMPRISING, IN COMBINATION, A SUBSTANTIALLY RECTANGULAR REAR PANEL AND A SUBSTANTIALLY RECTANGULAR FRONT PANEL, SAID FRONT PANEL CONSISTING AT LEAST IN PART OF TRANSPARENT MATERIAL AND EACH OF SAID PANELS HAVING AN UPPER EDGE PORTION, A LOWER EDGE PORTION AND TWO LATERAL EDGE PORTIONS; MEANS FOR CONNECTING SAID PANELS ALONG THE LOWER AND ALONG ONE LATERAL EDGE PORTION THEREOF, THE OTHER LATERAL EDGE PORTION OF AT LEAST ONE OF SAID PANELS HAVING CUTOUT MEANS FOR FACILITATING REMOVAL AND INSERTION OF A SHEET BETWEEN SAID PANELS; AND ENVELOPEGUIDING MEANS SECURED TO THE UPPER EDGE PORTION AND EXTENDING BEYOND THE LATERAL EDGE PORTIONS OF SAID REAR PANEL. 